Democrats target Scott with web ads, social media

Thursday

Jul 25, 2013 at 2:45 PM

The Florida Democratic Party announced Thursday it is beginning an online and social media campaign targeting Gov. Rick Scott.

The Associated Press

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The Florida Democratic Party announced Thursday it is beginning an online and social media campaign targeting Republican Gov. Rick Scott even though the party doesn't have a well-known, well-funded candidate to face him.

The Democratic Party is buying ads on newspaper and social media website to promote www.realrickscott.com that criticizes Scott's record as governor.

"With his re-election looming, we have seen him try to change his stripes and camouflage his real motivations and his real beliefs in his effort to win over independent and moderate voters," said party Chairwoman Allison Tant. "It hasn't worked all year and we're going to make sure it doesn't."

The campaign comes as Democrats wait for a strong candidate to emerge against Scott. The only credible candidate in the race right now is former state Sen. Nan Rich, who has struggled to raise the money needed for a successful statewide campaign. She's been a candidate for more than a year and has raised only $160,000 in a state where it costs more than $1 million to run a week of television ads. And a Quinnipiac University poll last month showed that 84 percent of voters don't know enough about Rich to form an opinion.

Former Republican governor turned Democrat Charlie Crist is widely expected to get in the race and 2010 nominee Alex Sink is also considering a run.

"We have a couple of people who are looking at the race. We have some major talent with great reach in our state and they have the luxury of time and we're taking it," Tant said.

The Republican Party of Florida has already begun online campaigns against Crist, using a web domain Democrats used against Crist back in his days as a Republican. The site, www.emptychaircharlie.com , quotes from old Democratic Party press releases that attacked Crist. Another site, http://cristorylessons.tumblr.com/ , takes an unflattering look at Crist's record.

"The only thing that's extreme is how extremely sad it is that the Florida Democratic Party will not have a candidate for governor who has the second largest drop in unemployment in the entire nation," Curry said in a statement released by a spokeswoman.